President Kabila is being
viewed as a Semi Marxist of North Korean style. Kabila after self declared as
the president of newborn Democratic Republic of Congo, made his very first
visit to China, Libya and Cuba.
He was born in Jadotville (now Likasi) according
to certain and a Moba (Ex-Baudouinville) in the North of Katanga (ex-Shaba) in
November 27 1939 according to French news paper Le Monde. He is ethic Luba.
After his secondary study he went to France and studied political Philosophy,
over there, he become a Marxiste. When Belgian Congo became independent from
Belgium in 1960, he fought against the Katangaise gendarmerie. Later he joined the provincial government of
North-Katanga in the city of Manono and become later on the president of La Jeubakat (or Balubakat Partie). From
1961-1962, he studied one year in the University of Belgrade. From February
1962 –1963 his was chief cabinet in different sections of provincial
government. In 19963, he went to Brazzaville met with allied with leftist
Patrice Lumumba who became the country’s first prime minister later, and
created the le Comité national de
libération (CNL) under the supervision of Christophe Gbenye. Kabila was
appointed as the general secretary of social Affaires, in Youth and in Sports.
After being appointed in different position of Provisional government of CNL,
the rebellion was defeated. He takes refuge in Kenya then Uganda, where he met
the current president Yoweri Museveni and they build a strong partnership, for
instance, in the 80’s he joined the guerrilla of Yoweri Museveni. In December
24 1967, a Nairobi Kenya, Kabila formed his very own political formation, the le Parti de la Révolution Populaire (PRP). As
he reestablishes bases in the region of Fizi he creates the military branch of les Forces Armées Populaires (FAP).
Kabila understand that his soldiers must not only trained militarily but as
well as ideologically, hence he introduced and teaching to soldiers the “seven
mistakes” drew from the Simba Revolution.
I.
An insufficiency of political education.
II.
An over dependence vis-à-vis of foreigners.
III.
Under
estimate the role of peasantry.
IV.
Tribunalism.
V.
Lack of disciplines.
VI.
Lack a cooperation between combatant and the people.
VII. Absence
of a revolutionary party.
In
terms of military strategy, he embraces the Chinese conception of Revolution of
Mass, based in the hard of rural world. It was a method that seduced one of
Kabila’s godfather as well, the president Julius Nyerere, another admirator of
President Mao.
However, the existence of PRP was been
long time ignored by the media until the kidnapping of three Americans and
Dutch technicians in 1975. The purpose was to obtain a ransom and to liberate
30 militias imprisoned in Dar-es-Salaam. In an other occasion 1984, Kabila initiate
an other kidnapping, this time an French entrepreneur André Lézy, abducted in
Kalemie then freed in Burundi half year later. Therefore, among the soldiers of
FAP, Kabila have had a great prestige, his was called “Mzee”, a Swahili term
meaning respect toward elder. In 1977, Kabila already created a mini-state,
which has its own hospitals, schools, and collective agriculture fields and
even its own currency.
During this period, military activity of
Kabila was limited. Curiously, Kabila has chosen not to participate in any
Shaba wars of 1977 and 1978. Why is this so? In my own judgment, Kabila knew
the military capacity of his force for one, and secondly, he was waiting to see
further progress of fighting between Mobutu vs. other ex-gendarmes katangais.
The result of France and Morocco intervention demonstrate that his was right to
have a cool mined.
In the early 1996, Kabila headed the Alliance des Forces Démocratiques pour la
Libération du Congo-Zaïre (AFDL) with an objective of to overthrown the
long time dictator Mobutu. The very fast civil war of seven month ousted
Mobutu, and in May 17 1997 the force of AFDL entered Kinshasa with the help
from Angola’s force army without any necessary fighting. Of cause, on the other
hand Mobutu and his clan left Kinshasa with no hostility take with them the
last few cash remained in the Central Bank of Zaire.
In resume, Kabila after 3 decades of
guerrilla experience, by my understanding should have a strong political and
military talent that we can consider as the core of an iron man par excellence.
It is clear that by choosing the hard way of dealing with any foreign
manipulations, the refuse of James Kabarehe, a Rwandan imposed by the Paul
Kagame as the Chief staff of Congolese Army, a rupture with tradition economic
partners of ex-Zaire including France, Belgium and the United States, the deny
of Kofi Annan’s UN special envoy in regard of massacre commit toward hutus
refugees, all these decision put in Laurent Kabila in a state of isolation.
Yet, as a state man, and in a particular situation of nation insurgence, Kabila
just did as Mao did toward Soviet Russia or General De Gaulle did vis-à-vis of
NATO and Americans.